Don't Find Trouble (Trouble Finds Me)
by sibilancesisters
Summary: "But the three of them are sure to be targeted! And add in the copycat ninja as their sensei-" the teacher started only to be cut off with a raised hand. "That will be all, Iruka." (OC Story)
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hello all! Guess who's back. Been working on this story idea for a while and figured I'd get some thoughts on it. It's cross-posted on here and ao3 (same username) So I just wanna start with saying that I love Sakura and do have plans for her to be included in this story at a later time. Don't worry!**

**Summary:  
"But the three of them are sure to be targeted! And add in the copycat ninja as their sensei-" the teacher started only to be cut off with a raised hand.  
"That will be all Iruka." (OC story)**

* * *

"But-but Hokage! Are you sure you want those three to be together?" The academy teacher argued with the files of three students held in hand. With wide eyes, he held eye contact with the leader of the village across the desk.

"Yes. They will either thrive together or fail. The weaknesses and strengths documented in their files will serve them well," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, lifting his pipe back to his mouth, a humorous smile toying with his lips.

Had team seven passed the test the first time, this combination wouldn't have been possible, but now that it was? He planned to take full advantage of the situation.

"But the three of them are sure to be targeted! And add in the copycat ninja as their sensei-" the teacher started only to be cut off with a raised hand.

"That will be all, Iruka."

* * *

"No."

She was completely unamused.

Mouth set in a firm line and there was a deep crease between her brow, matching her grandfathers. His was out of age and stress, hers was just out of complete frustration because she'd had a plan. From how her shinobi career was going to start and how it'd end, it was something her grandfather had signed off on.

It just wasn't fair!

Part of her wanted to pout, she wanted to stomp her feet and scream until she got her way. What was wrong with continuing onto the already formed team? They had gotten to know each other over the last month, started to form those bonds of trust that were ever so important. She didn't need to be placed with two genin who'd already proven that they didn't know the first thing about actually being part of a team.

Makiko doubted they'd know teamwork if it walked up to them and smacked them in the face.

Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto had already failed once.

If the rumors were true, then Hatake Kakashi sent them back for another year. And yet, just six months later and they were being pushed through to become genin once more. They'd acted like complete children when under his tutelage for those few days, somewhat infamous children but that didn't change anything. They couldn't put their own needs, their pride and stubbornness and… what was her point again? Give her some time and Makiko was sure she'd think up an abundance of other faults with her new teammates.

She was stubborn but unfortunately, so was her grandfather.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was a very stubborn man.

A man of many hats, grandfather, Hokage, he wore them all… some better than others.

She might've stood there, huffing and puffing but Makiko knew it was a losing battle. As she simmered under his calm stare, her fingers tap-tap-tapped against her thighs, just waiting for him to speak. She wanted him to speak instead of just sitting there, staring and letting the silence stretch so the other shinobi in the room glanced back and forth like a tennis match.

They were all wondered who'd crack first.

Her shoulders caved, slumping forward and her eyes dropped to the floor, knowing that at the end of the day- he'd pull rank. Her defeat was inevitable so she bowed low, her hair spilling over her face to hide the glimmer of fury in her eyes. "Of course, Hokage-sama, when should I expect to meet my new team?"

"Ah, I knew you'd come around Makiko," he said and she wanted to shove that pipe down his throat because as much as she loved her grandfather, the Hokage left a lot to be desired. That smile was one she hated seeing, tightly stretched and the winkles deep in his skin because he knew this would be hard on her but he couldn't show favoritism. Needs a must, everything for the sake of the village. "They will be informed of their team assignment tomorrow with the rest of the graduates."

...Nevermind, she was going to try and smother him in his sleep.

Despite the obvious quiver of pure anger in her body, something which the other shinobi filtering in and out of the office noted, she stood tall. A request from the Hokage was never a request, he just wanted her to agree so she'd be more accommodating to her new team. Grimacing, she winced when her fingernails broke into the skin of her palm, squeezing her fists tightly enough to draw blood. Just so then she wouldn't lash out childishly.

"Of course, Hokage-sama."

"Dismissed."

* * *

With a fork gripped in her hand, she stabbed into her dinner, a scowl drawing her lips into a frown. Imagining the faces of the three people she least wanted to see, she tore the meat on her plate apart and shoved it into her mouth. Makiko was not amused. Her perfectly laid plans for her future had just blown up in her face, and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.

"Yes, Hokage. Anything you say, Hokage. Let me be your puppet, Hokage," she muttered under her breath, not caring that her parents were home. It was a rare occasion that they were both anywhere, that usually she would be jumping for joy at the moments her and Konohamaru with them. But she couldn't muster up the energy.

"Kiko, what's wrong?" her little brother asked, poking a finger into her side playfully.

Shooting a look at him, her features softened. Makiko had never been able to take her frustrations out on him, even when he rightfully deserved it. "Gran- The Hokage," she corrected herself, trying to keep the two separate, "called me into his office today and told me about the change in plans with my team assignment."

His puzzled expression made her puff out a sigh.

"Instead of being placed on team two, like it was originally planned, it's been decided that I'd be a better fit for team seven." If there was a hint of bitterness laced through her voice, he didn't seem to notice.

Out of everyone, save for maybe Anko, Konohamaru knew her the best. In the last six months, he had spent more than his fair share listening to Makiko complain about the two Genin who had failed their test and been sent back to the academy. It had been three, but Haruno Sakura had made in less than a week before she pulled herself from the academy.

"Sorry, Kiko," he said, a frown jutting out his bottom lip.

"I'm sure Makiko will be fine, once she settles in with her team, right honey?" her mother, Rika said, shooting a look at her daughter.

"Of course, Kaa-san. It's just a change. You know how I struggle with change."

Konohamaru looked between his mother and sister, clearly not understanding the exchange happening above him.

"Hatake Kakashi is an excellent shinobi. I'm sure you will learn everything you need to from him," her father, Hiroki chimed in. He was always the one to defuse what could quickly become a situation between the two Sarutobi women.

"Kakashi-sensei isn't the one I'm worried about, Tou-san," Makiko said, the honesty pouring from her lips before she could stop it. She would be perfectly fine with who her teacher was if only her teammates were anyone else.

The rest of their dinner went by in relative silence. Moving in ease, Konohamaru and Makiko, moved around each other as they set out cleaning up. It was a practiced dance, one that they had perfected after many nights just like this one.

* * *

**Chapter word count: 1,251  
Story word count: 1,251**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: I didn't want to just leave it with the prologue so here's the first chapter! Enjoy!**

**Summary:  
"But the three of them are sure to be targeted! And add in the copycat ninja as their sensei-" the teacher started only to be cut off with a raised hand.  
"That will be all Iruka." (OC story)**

* * *

Lying in her bed, she wondered if anyone would notice if she chose to just stay there, ignoring the responsibilities that her grandfather had heaped into her lap the night before. Her team was going to be a mess, that much she already knew, and unless she wanted to be dragged down into the debts of failure, she was going to have to do something.

The tell-tale signs of movement from down the hall forced a groan out of her lips. Even if she could get away with staying in bed, she wouldn't leave Konohamaru to walk to the academy alone. With her being a graduate, the two of them wouldn't have as much time together as they usually did. A sharp pang struck deep within her at that thought.

Pushing out of bed, she slowly went through the motions of getting ready. After tying her hair up into a high bun, she fastened the hitai-ate around her forehead. Checking her reflection quickly, the hidden leaf symbol peaked out beneath her bangs, Makiko gave a toothy grin.

"Come on, Kono!" she called already on her way to the kitchen. The didn't normally sit down for breakfast, but an apple on the way out the door was a must. She had learned long ago that her classmates didn't like dealing with a Makiko that hadn't had breakfast.

Grabbing Konohamaru something as well, his thunderous feet came charging towards her. Goggles planted firmly on his head, he grabbed for his breakfast. Rolling her eyes fondly, she shooed him out the door so they could start the trek from the Sarutobi compound.

The two moved easily through Konoha, chatting quietly until Konohamaru spotted his friends and rushed off with an excited Yosh!

Smiling, she walked behind the three of them the last leg of their walk. Passing them, Makiko's fingers brushed through her little brother's hair as she ruffled it.

"You three have fun, yeah?" She called over her shoulder before heading to her class.

* * *

"You can't put me with him!" Naruto exploded, his arm jerking up to point out Sasuke.

Slouching down in her seat, Makiko's head dropped down onto the table in front of her with a groan. The two of them had been arguing for at least five minutes, ignoring Iruka's every attempt to defuse the situation.

"How about we take this outside and settle this once and for all, Deadlast," Sasuke growled stepping towards him menacingly.

Makiko thought about moving between the two of them, trying to defuse what would probably be the first of many more arguments to come, but she stayed in her seat. Frown etched into her features, she slouched into her seat as the boys bowed up.

Iruka-sensei gave an audible sigh as he got both their attention. He looked just as put out as she felt about the situation.

"If you two are both finished, I was saying that your sensei would be by to collect the lot of you shortly. Do not leave until they do."

With that, their teacher bid them all goodbye, wishing them all luck on the next step in their journey to become a ninja.

One by one, the teams around then got collected causing Naruto to become overwhelmingly frustrated. As the last team left, even Sasuke was muttering about their late sensei.

"Meet me at training ground three," a voice sounded without any warning. Three head whipped around, taking in the sight of Hatake Kakashi with his famous book in hand before he disappeared.

"He's such a bastard!" The blond boy exclaimed, causing Makiko to roll her eyes.

The two of them should know how he was, Kakashi was known for three things. His book, his lateness, and how deadly he was. Pushing herself up, she smirked as the boys both rushed out of the room. Instead of heading towards the doors, she took the stairs to the roof. Makiko wasn't in a rush, going from rooftop to rooftop, her eyes stayed locked on her teammates rushing towards the training grounds.

While the beat her there, Makiko dropped down beside them, not a hair out of place. Both Naruto and Sasuke looked out of breath, having competed in what seemed to be a race that ended in a tie.

"That was fast," a bored voice drawled, making Makiko jerk her head around to find Kakashi leaned against the tree.

"Some of us know how to be on time," Sasuke spit out with so much disdain, that it made Makiko's eyes widen in surprise. This was going to be a nightmare.

Kakashi hummed, turning a page in his book. Biting back a groan, she turned her back on the boys, giving her full attention to their Sensei. It seemed as if seconds dragged into minutes and minutes dragged into hours as his attention never wavered from the book in his hand.

"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto wined, breaking the eerie silence.

With a put upon sigh, Kakashi folded the covers back together and pushed it into the pouch attached to his hip. "My cute little genin!" He announced, cheer dripping from his every word. "I'm sure the three of you know each other well enough that we don't have to suffer through another round of introductions, so how about we get straight to the test."

Sweat started to pool on Makiko's palms, and a glance at her teammates showed equal amounts of nerves playing on both of their faces. If his test was really as hard as rumors said it was, could the three of them even hope of passing? Naruto and Sasuke had already failed once, which only lead to their strained relationship to worsen, and she couldn't stand the pair of them on a good day. How could they be expected to survive as a team?

"The boys already know what test this is, so Makiko, this is for you. The objective of this test is for your three to try and steal these," he started, holding up a pair of little silver bells before continuing. "You can use any means necessary. As I'm sure you have noticed, there are only two bells, so one of you will not be passing. You have three hours. Any questions?"

Face contorting with a puzzled look, Makiko cocked her head before shaking it. Genin teams were always made up of three genin and a jonin. There was a hidden objective in this test, she just couldn't put her finger on what.

"Then, begin."

* * *

"There!"

The three of them glared across at one another.

"The stupid clock's broken, we have as much time as we want!" Makiko exclaimed, arms thrown in the air and wondering why her grandfather hated her so much as to put her on this team. Her fury on the tip of her tongue with the morons on her team who were refusing to listen.

"It doesn't work that way," Sasuke insisted, fists clenching by his sides.

"That's cheating!" Naruto stomped.

"We're shinobi, it doesn't matter-" she started, only to be cut short when leaves rushed past them.

Kakashi-sensei looked unimpressed but then again, Makiko hadn't seen him wear any other expression since being attached to this sinking ship of a team.

"Sadly, she's right but still, you all fail," he didn't have to sound so pleased about it, even if he did level each one of them with a glare of pure loathing.

"But-"

"That's-"

"You-"

The three of them all started speaking at once, moving forward towards their sensei, panic evident in all their faces.

Jiji was going to kill her, Makiko couldn't help but gripe to herself, color draining from her face entirely at the prospect. Failure wasn't good, it wasn't even an option. There had been expectations laid upon her shoulders, unspoken but heavily implied. She couldn't deal with the disappointment. Oh god, nevermind Jiji, Anko was going to murder her.

"There is, however," Kakashi said, the teams' protests dying on their lips. "One chance to redeem yourselves."

Makiko's hope soared.

"Sasuke," the boy looks up, determined and ready for anything that was going to be thrown at them. "Choose which teammate will fail."

Nevermind, hope had fallen and crash-landed.

Silence swept over them and she pursed her lips, hating how unsure she was of how this whole thing would play out. There wasn't any doubt in her or their minds who he'd automatically choose. None of it made sense though, this team didn't make sense. This entire test seemed like it was set up to let them fail.

Sasuke scoffed and proved her right.

"Naruto, he's deadlast and he'll always be deadlast," he scoffed but looking uncomfortable was even the smallest bridge between them was burnt into a crisp.

"And Naruto?" Kakashi asked, all eyes swiveling to the seething blonde who looked ready to tackle Sasuke at any given moment.

"Sasuke! I'm going to prove that I'm better than him, and everyone else! I'll be Hokage someday!" The excitement that poured out with his words had Makiko wanting to step back, to move as far away from the over-excited boy as possible, but she stayed planted firmly in her spot.

And then, there was one.

All eyes were trained on her now.

"Makiko, your choice."

Her eyes flicked between her teammates, gnawing on her bottom lip as they danced between Naruto and Sasuke. Something was ringing in the back of her head, it all seemed very familiar to her but she couldn't place it. Not yet, her brain was hurting just thinking about it, rubbing her palm against the sturdy material of her shorts and-

"All of us," her face lit up in realization.

Jiji and his stories, who knew that'd be what saved the day?

"All of us," she repeated as a small smile curled her mouth. Her grandfather had loved to brag about the test he had given his genin team, and this was just a lukewarm version of it. "We were put into teams for a reason. We should have tried to work together."

With what little she could make out of his face, she wasn't sure if he was shocked or disappointed by her answer. Either would be fair enough since she bet he was hoping to fail them, Makiko definitely wouldn't have wanted to be stuck as the sensei of this kind of team. If she'd been anyone else but the Third's granddaughter, they might have failed spectacularly as well.

The corners of her mouth raised, a glimmer of teeth as she cocked her head.

"That's the stupidest-"

Sasuke started, only to be cut off by Naruto. "Yeah! We were told to get them!"

Makiko couldn't help but snort at the offending looks they both sported, as if they couldn't even imagine agreeing on something- even if it was just disagreeing with her.

"As stupid as you may think it is, Makiko is right. You will never survive if you can't work on a team."

The two boys looked up at Kakashi, heads cocked, and completely dumbfounded. "Those who break the rules are scum. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum."

"You know, Kakashi-sensei. If you're going to use that as a test, it's probably best that you don't use it on someone who had heard the story of that test their whole childhood."

Giving what she assumed was his equivalent to a smile, a hand was in her hair messing it up. "And yet, you still couldn't work with these two as a team."

It was like watching a kitten get angry, her eyes widened and she puffed herself up, mouth open and ready to defend herself- not that she got a word in before Kakashi continued speaking. As if he didn't notice the silent glower she was directing his way.

"However, I know you tried. So, youall pass!"

* * *

**Chapter word count: 1,973**  
**Story word count:3,224**


End file.
